Phillip Vigil is one of the exciting, young native painters working today. His modernist designs are a play on his life, culture and personal experiences. Phillip has primarily been working on paper, but the transition to canvas has been an exciting change in his art. In a 2011 “Rethinking Contemporary Native American Art” article in “THE” magazine, they included Vigil saying, “Phillip Vigil seeks his identity as a contemporary creative type who is also an indigenous person. He is self-taught, inspired to paint by his love of the comic strip Calvin & Hobbes”.

This painting, “Untitled, No. 1”, is a large scale piece painted on canvas. This painting shows his first step in returning to canvas and doing it in a BIG way! Phillip said of this piece:

“This painting represents my return to painting on canvas. It is the largest of my first four recent canvas works. While I’m primarily known for works on paper, returning to the canvas has been a seamless process. The larger expanse of space available to paint has ushered in a new perspective for me. I no longer feel contained by the limits of the paper size and it is quite freeing.

“This painting is about life and my life, in particular. These are internal landscapes I have created, which stretch back to my childhood and beyond. The hand coming down from the left corner is picking up the marbles or gum ball drops. The rest of the painting is in motion. This is a metaphor for how life flows around us all at the same time.”

We are pleased to represent his paintings in our Scottsdale gallery and look for more from this amazing artist!